Transcriptomic comparison of the retina in two mouse models of diabetes

Mouse models of type I diabetes offer the potential to combine genetic approaches with other pharmacological or physiological manipulations to investigate the pathophysiology and treatment of diabetic retinopathy. Type I diabetes is induced in mice through chemical toxins or can arise spontaneously from genetic mutations. Both models are associated with retinal vascular and neuronal changes. Retinal transcriptomic responses in C57BL/6J mice treated with streptozotocin and Ins2Akita/+ were compared after 3 months of hyperglycemia. Specific gene expression changes suggest a neurovascular inflammatory response in diabetic retinopathy. Genes common to the two models may represent the response of the retina to hyperglycemia, while changes unique to each model may represent time-dependent disease progression differences in the various models. Further investigation of the commonalities and differences between mouse models of type I diabetes may define cause and effect events in early diabetic retinopathy disease progression

Development and validity of the Rating Scales of Academic Skills for Reading Comprehension

The development and psychometric qualities of a measure using teacher judgment to rate performance in reading comprehension for narrative text is described-the Rating Scales for Academic Skills-Reading Comprehension Narrative (RSAS-RCN). Sixty-five teachers from the third, fourth, and fifth grades of 8 elementary schools completed the measure on 177 students. Each teacher rated students who had been identified through school-based universal screening to be below the 25th percentile, between the 25th and 74th percentile, and at or above the 75th percentile on national normative standards. Results indicated the RSAS-RCN has strong to moderate evidence of (a) 1-week test-retest reliability, (b) concurrent validity with the Group Reading Assessment and Diagnostic Evaluation (GRADE) and end of year state assessment in reading, and (c) significant classification accuracy across student ability levels. Principal component analysis and item response theory (Rasch modeling) indicate the RSAS-RCN is comprised of a single general dimension. Overall, this examination of the RSAS-RCN suggests teacher judgment may be a potentially valuable tool in assessing reading comprehension among upper elementary school students. (PsycINFO Database Recor

Caregiver perceptions of sleep problems and desired areas of change in young children

10.1016/j.sleep.2022.02.021SLEEP MEDICINE9267-7